The present invention relates generally to a child safety device and, more particularly, to a safety-strap set that provides for securing chairs under tables to prevent infants and toddlers from using the chair seats to climb on to reduce the risk of injuries to the child.
Toddlers attempt to satisfy their curiosity by energetically exploring their environment. Generally, this behavior is encouraged, as it is well-accepted that an important part of the overall learning process is engaging in first hand experience. However, a toddler's desire to learn about the environment must be tempered by the realization that a toddler's learning could include activities that pose risks to the safety of the toddler. Toddlers continue to practice simple motor activities, such as walking and climbing for some time. However, their lack of surefootedness at this stage frequently results in the toddler undergoing a moment of imbalance that results in a fall. Most such tumbles are harmless and quickly dismissed by both toddler and caregiver. There are times, however, when such a fall results in injury, sometimes serious. Therefore, parents, grandparents, babysitters, and the like, often attempt to child proof the toddlers surroundings to reduce the risk of injury while allowing the curious toddler to explore the world around them.
Even the most well-meaning caretaker is unable to keep a close eye on the toddler under their care every moment of each day—there are just too many other daily happenings that demand their attention, even if only momentarily. Toddlers, despite their lack of dexterity, are incredibly quick moving. This, coupled with their size, can make monitoring and restraining the toddler extremely difficult for parents and babysitters, let alone for older relatives. A toddler's quickness, coupled with his or her curiosity, can lead to some potentially serious situations.
One of the more dangerous activities toddlers indulge in is climbing. Toddlers are fascinated with objects that are within their sight, but out of their reach, such as an object on top of a kitchen or dinning room table. In order to satisfy their curiosity, or simply to retrieve a desired object, a toddler is likely to think of a way to get the desired item. In many cases, especially when the object of their desire is sitting on top of a kitchen or dinning room table, a toddler will resort to using a chair as a climbing tool. As toddlers are not yet competently dexterous, their attempts at using a chair for climbing, coupled with the inherent instability of a chair when used in this manner, may result in a potentially dangerous fall. Additionally, because of their quick, and often unanticipated movement, the entire climbing event and subsequent fall, could easily happen while the parent, grandparent, or babysitter has only momentarily averted their attention from the toddler, such as to answer the telephone or the doorbell.
The reason chairs are so appealing and dangerous to the toddler is that, unlike some other items in a house, chairs, especially those used routinely by a kitchen or dinning room table, are readily accessible to the toddler. Such table chairs are light weight, and thus, easily moved by the child, also such chairs are relatively easy for a toddler to climb onto and are quite difficult, if not impossible, to child proof. Unlike doors that can be latched or wall plugs that can be capped, there is no readily available means to secure a chair that is used for sitting at a table to that table. Because a means to child proof these kinds of chairs is lacking, caregivers must constantly be concerned about a child taking the opportunity to use the chair as a climbing tool, and possibly injuring themselves in the process. Thus, it is quite clear that there a pressing need for a means and method of securing a chair under a table.
There are some means available for keeping children, especially toddlers, from using a chair as a climbing means to climb onto a table or counter top, but they all seem to have shortfalls. Such means all involve not a means for securing the chair, but constitute some means of restraining the infant, such as by placing the child into a playpen. But, older toddlers are likely to climb out of the typical playpen, which presents another hazard to the safety of the child. Alternatively, young children may be secured by a leash-type device to some safe area of the house. Leasing a child, however, is not acceptable to most caregivers and certainly is not by the child. Such restraining means do not answer the need for a way to child-proof chairs that are used for sitting at a table. The ideal device to child-proof chairs used for sitting at a table should be easy and cost effective to manufacture, thus being affordable for all. Also, the device should be easy to use and ideally operable using only one hand. The necessity of this one handed operation is two fold. First and foremost, not all persons using this device would be the most dexterous, especially if used by grandparents to protect their grandchildren. Secondly, one may not have both hands free to use the device, which is especially true in a household with small children. Thus, the fewer parts required to make the device operable, the more attractive it becomes.
In addition to offering single-hand operation, ease of manufacturing, and being cost effective; there are other practical considerations that should be considered. For one, the device should be able to be adapted to fit differently sized and styled chairs and tables. The device should also be portable so that it may accompany the child when traveling. For the atheistic sake, the device should be unobtrusive. As, toddlers are only toddlers for a short period of time and the time period during which there is a need for such a device it limited, the device should detachable. Likewise, if a new table and chairs are purchased, having a detachably attachable device would eliminate the need to purchase a second device, providing both a cost and time savings.